Vol. 148, No. 27 — December 31, 2014

Registration

SOR/2014-307 December 12, 2014

MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY ACT

Regulations Amending Certain Regulations Made under the Motor Vehicle Safety Act

P.C. 2014-1462 December 12, 2014

His Excellency the Governor General in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister of Transport, pursuant to subsections 5(1) (see footnote a) and 11(1) (see footnote b) of the Motor Vehicle Safety Act (see footnote c), makes the annexed Regulations Amending Certain Regulations Made under the Motor Vehicle Safety Act.

REGULATIONS AMENDING CERTAIN REGULATIONS MADE UNDER THE MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY ACT

MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY REGULATIONS

1. Subsection 106(3) of Part II of Schedule IV to the Motor Vehicle Safety Regulations (see footnote 1) is repealed.

2. Subsection 108(66) of Part II of Schedule IV to the Regulations and the heading before it are repealed.

3. Subsection 110(9) of Part II of Schedule IV to the Regulations and the heading before it are repealed.

4. Subsection 114(3) of Part II of Schedule IV to the Regulations is repealed.

5. Subsection 116(3) of Part II of Schedule IV to the Regulations is repealed.

6. Subsection 118(3) of Part II of Schedule IV to the Regulations is repealed.

7. Subsection 120(6) of Part II of Schedule IV to the Regulations and the heading before it are repealed.

8. Subsection 121(7) of Part II of Schedule IV to the Regulations is repealed.

9. Subsection 123(16) of Part II of Schedule IV to the Regulations is repealed.

10. Subsection 124(2) of Part II of Schedule IV to the Regulations is repealed.

11. Subsection 126(2) of Part II of Schedule IV to the Regulations is repealed.

12. Subsection 131(3) of Part II of Schedule IV to the Regulations is repealed.

13. Section 202 of Part III of Schedule IV to the Regulations is replaced by the following:

202. Every multi-purpose passenger vehicle, bus or truck with a GVWR of 4 536 kg or less, every passenger car and every three-wheeled vehicle shall conform to the requirements of Technical Standards Document No. 202, Head Restraints (TSD 202), as amended from time to time.

14. Subsection 203(5) of Part III of Schedule IV to the Regulations is repealed.

15. Subsection 204(4) of Part III of Schedule IV to the Regulations is repealed.

16. Subsection 206(3) of Part III of Schedule IV to the Regulations is repealed.

17. Subsection 207(4) of Part III of Schedule IV to the Regulations is repealed.

18. Subsection 208(24) of Part III of Schedule IV to the Regulations is repealed.

19. Subsection 212(3) of Part III of Schedule IV to the Regulations is repealed.

20. Subsection 213.4(23) of Part III of Schedule IV to the Regulations is repealed.

21. Subsection 216(4) of Part III of Schedule IV to the Regulations is repealed.

22. Subsection 219(3) of Part III of Schedule IV to the Regulations is repealed.

23. Subsection 220(3) of Part III of Schedule IV to the Regulations is repealed.

24. Subsection 301(3) of Part IV of Schedule IV to the Regulations is repealed.

25. Subsection 301.1(1.3) of Part IV of Schedule IV to the Regulations is repealed.

26. Subsection 301.2(1.3) of Part IV of Schedule IV to the Regulations is repealed.

27. Subsection 302(2) of Part IV of Schedule IV to the Regulations is repealed.

28. Subsection 305(6) of Part IV of Schedule IV to the Regulations is repealed.

29. Subsection 401(4) of Part IV of Schedule IV to the Regulations is repealed.

30. Subsection 500(6) of Part IV of Schedule IV to the Regulations is repealed.

MOTOR VEHICLE RESTRAINT SYSTEMS AND BOOSTER SEATS SAFETY REGULATIONS

31. Subsection 100(2) of the Motor Vehicle Restraint Systems and Booster Seats Safety Regulations (see footnote 2) is repealed.

MOTOR VEHICLE TIRE SAFETY REGULATIONS

32. Subsection 1(3) of the Motor Vehicle Tire Safety Regulations (see footnote 3) is replaced by the following:

Terms defined in TSD 109, 119 or 139

(3) For the purposes of these Regulations, words and expressions used in TSD 109, TSD 119 or TSD 139 and not defined in that technical standards document but defined in either of those other technical standards documents have the same meaning as in that other technical standards document.

33. Subsection 3(4) of the Regulations is repealed.

34. Subsection 4(3) of the Regulations is repealed.

35. Subsection 5(5) of the Regulations is repealed.

COMING INTO FORCE

36. These Regulations come into force on the day on which they are registered.

REGULATORY IMPACT ANALYSIS STATEMENT

(This statement is not part of the Regulations.)

Issues

The Motor Vehicle Safety Act (MVSA) has recently been updated. One of the amendments was to remove subsection 12(4), which means that sections of the Motor Vehicle Safety Regulations (MVSR), the Motor Vehicle Tire Safety Regulations (MVTSR) and the Motor Vehicle Restraint Systems and Booster Seats Safety Regulations (RSSR), hereinafter referred to as the regulations, that incorporate a Technical Standards Document (TSD) as amended from time to time are no longer required to have expiry dates of up to five years after the day on which they came into force.

Since the current regulations were enacted under the previous version of the MVSA, all sections of the regulations that incorporate a TSD by reference have expiry dates, some of which are nearing their five-year limit. To maintain their continuous application, these sections need to be amended to remove their expiry dates. If they are allowed to expire, the safety requirements they contain, which help ensure the safety of the Canadian driving public, will cease to be legally enforceable requirements under the MVSA.

Background

The MVSA was recently amended to support the objectives of the Regulatory Cooperation Council to enhance the alignment of Canadian and U.S. regulations while protecting Canadians. It introduces measures to accelerate and streamline the regulatory process, reduce the administrative burden for manufacturers and importers and improve safety for Canadians through revised oversight procedures and enhanced availability of vehicle safety information. The amendment received Royal Assent on June 19, 2014.

As defined by section 12 of the MVSA, a TSD adapts or reproduces, in whole or in part, an enactment of a foreign government or material produced by an international organization (e.g. a Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard, FMVSS, issued by the United States National Highway Traffic Safety Administration).

TSDs form most, and in some cases all, of the safety requirements for new motor vehicles and equipment offered for sale in Canada. TSDs are published by Transport Canada and then amended from time to time with certain adaptations. These adaptations include, but are not limited to, the deletion of material that does not apply under the MVSA and the regulations, the introduction of metric measurements, the deletion of superseded dates, the substitution of the U.S. reporting requirements with the Canadian ones, editorial changes, and translation into French.

Objectives

The Department is hereby amending sections of the regulations to remove their expiry dates to ensure that the safety requirements they contain and the TSDs that are incorporated by reference will not cease to have the force and effect of the law.

Description

This amendment removes the expiry date in each of the following 35 sections of the regulations:

“One-for-One” Rule

The “One-for-One” Rule does not apply to this proposal, as there is no change in administrative costs to business.

Small business lens

The small business lens does not apply to this proposal, as there are no additional costs to small business or to businesses in general.

Consultation

Transport Canada informs the automotive industry, public safety organizations, and the general public when changes are planned to the regulations. This gives stakeholders the opportunity to comment on these changes by letter or email. The Department also consults regularly, in face-to-face meetings or teleconferences, the automotive and equipment industry, public safety organizations, the provinces, and the territories. This amendment and its publication in the Canada Gazette, Part II, without prepublication of a proposal in the Canada Gazette, Part I, has been discussed with the major vehicle manufacturing stakeholders. They did not have any concerns and are glad to see this administrative burden end.

Finally, the Department meets regularly with the federal authorities of other countries. Harmonized regulations are key to trade and to a competitive Canadian automotive and equipment industry. Transport Canada and the United States Department of Transportation hold semi-annual meetings to discuss issues of mutual importance and planned regulatory changes. In addition, departmental officials participate in and support the development of Global Technical Regulations, which are developed by the World Forum for the Harmonization of Vehicle Regulations under the direction of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe.

A TSD is amended each time the respective enactment of the foreign government or the material produced by an international organization is amended, although the provision of the regulations that incorporates by reference a TSD does not have to be amended by virtue of a change in the text of the TSD alone. A TSD is not required to be published in either Part I or Part II of the Canada Gazette, either upon its initial incorporation by reference or following a subsequent amendment to the document. Nonetheless, the foreign enactment or the material produced by an international organization is consulted a priori by the motor vehicle and equipment industry. Although there is no requirement to publish a TSD in the Canada Gazette, an online version of the TSD is available on the Department of Transport Web site and section 17 of the MVSR requires that the Department of Transport publish a notice in the Canada Gazette, Part I, each time the Department makes an amendment to a TSD.

Only one of the 35 TSDs incorporated by reference has been revised after the date of coming into force of the provision that set out an expiration date for the incorporating section. More specifically, a notification of revision to TSD 108 — Lamps, Reflective Devices, and Associated Equipment was given on July 9, 2011. No comments were received following the publication of this notice.

Rationale

Removing the expiry date in the regulations listed above would maintain the continuous application of their requirements, which is imperative to ensure the safety of the Canadian driving public. In addition, continuing reference to TSDs will harmonize motor vehicle and equipment safety requirements with the United States. If these sections were allowed to expire, the safety requirements they contain would no longer be, in fact, requirements and enforceable under Canadian law.

TSDs are amended each time the enactment of the foreign government or material produced by the international organization is amended. These amendments do not require the approval of the Governor in Council nor a formal consultation with Canadian stakeholders. Nevertheless, section 17 of the MVSR requires each TSD amendment to be announced in the Canada Gazette, Part I. At that time, the industry and the Canadian public can submit their comments for the Department to take into consideration.

Implementation, enforcement and service standards

Motor vehicle manufacturers and importers are responsible for ensuring compliance with the requirements of the Motor Vehicle Safety Act and its regulations. The Department of Transport monitors the self-certification programs of manufacturers and importers by reviewing their test documentation, inspecting vehicles, and testing vehicles obtained in the open market. In addition, when a manufacturer or importer identifies a defect in a vehicle or equipment, it must issue a Notice of Defect to the owners and to the Minister of Transport. Any person or company that contravenes a provision of the Motor Vehicle Safety Act or its regulations is guilty of an offence and liable to the applicable penalty set out in the Act.

Contact

Marie Williams-Davignon
Junior Regulatory Development Engineer
Motor Vehicle Safety Directorate
Transport Canada
330 Sparks Street, 11th Floor
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0N5
Email: marie.williams-davignon@tc.gc.ca